Waikato expressway: Motorists can now bypass Huntly
A section of the new Waikato expressway opened to drivers on Monday. The $300 million, four-lane highway takes State Highway 1 east of Huntly - bypassing the small town. This particular section connects with the completed expressway at Ohinewai and Ngaruawahia. Work on the section of road has been underway since 2015. "The project has been complex and challenging but also hugely rewarding for all involved," NZTA portfolio manager Darryl Coalter said. It will improve safety and reduce time on the road cutting 35 minutes from the trip between Tirau and Auckland, the NZTA says. While drivers are happy about quicker travel times some Huntly retailers told they were worried they'd miss out on the more than 20,000 drivers that pass through the town most days. "We may stay for a couple of weeks and see how it goes and then we'll make a plan after that, but you know we are gonna miss out on the one-off people who are here on holiday," said Karen Putwain, who runs a seafood truck in the area.
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⚠️ DOGS DIE IN HOT CARS. If you love them, don't leave them. ⚠️
It's a message we share time and time again, and this year, we're calling on you to help us spread that message further.
Did you know that calls to SPCA about dogs left inside hot cars made up a whopping 11% of all welfare calls last summer? This is a completely preventable issue, and one which is causing hundreds of dogs (often loved pets) to suffer.
Here are some quick facts to share with the dog owners in your life:
👉 The temperature inside a car can heat to over 50°C in less than 15 minutes.
👉 Parking in the shade and cracking windows does little to help on a warm day. Dogs rely on panting to keep cool, which they can't do in a hot car.
👉 This puts dogs at a high risk of heatstroke - a serious condition for dogs, with a mortality rate between 39%-50%.
👉 It is an offence under the Animal Welfare Act to leave a dog in a hot vehicle if they are showing signs of heat stress. You can be fined, and prosecuted.
SPCA has created downloadable resources to help you spread the message even further. Posters, a flyer, and a social media tile can be downloaded from our website here: www.spca.nz...
We encourage you to use these - and ask your local businesses to display the posters if they can. Flyers can be kept in your car and handed out as needed.
This is a community problem, and one we cannot solve alone. Help us to prevent more tragedies this summer by sharing this post.
On behalf of the animals - thank you ❤️
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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62% Summer
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36.5% Winter
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1.5% Other - I'll share below
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps below!
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